Behind-the-Scenes at Disneyland’s New GUARDIANS OF THE GALAXY Ride

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When the beloved Tower of Terror ride closed at Disney’s California Adventure, fans understandably mourned the loss of one of their favorite attractions. But after getting a sneak peek behind the scenes of the new overlay, Guardians of the Galaxy: Mission Breakout!, it looks to be one of the most exciting new rides to date.

On a small private tour of the construction site, Walt Disney Imagineering Executive Designer Joe Rohde and Chief Creative Officer of Marvel Entertainment Joe Quesada walked us through the storyline as we went through the space. The results were an exciting look into the future of ride development and the future of Marvel in theme parks.

The new attraction will continue to use the exterior structure of the original building as well as the Tower of Terror ride system, with similar ride time and capacity. Overlaid exterior finishes and ornamentation will pull from the world of the comics and echo the Golden age of Marvel. Comic book fans will want to take their time, as the scenery will be packed with unexpected surprises. Quesada said, “There will be more Easter eggs in this ride than in any other ride at Disney.”

Inside the queue you are immersed into the world of the Collector. Marvel die hards will definitely recognize certain artifacts, as Taneleer Tivan’s collection is on full display and will feature vitrines filled with familiar items like Chitauri rifles, Nova Corps helmets, items from Asgard and more. The area will be a living collection that will change so visitors will be able to come back and see something new on a different visit.

The storyline is pure Guardians fun and excitement. Rocket is your guide through this high-stakes caper and he needs your human hand scans to get him in so that he can breakout his fellow Guardians. Rocket isn’t one for thoughtful execution because his plan to shut down the generator, means creatures escape, elevators stop working, thus starting the adventure.

This comedy action experience is a prison break farce and the velocity and acceleration is extreme to say the least. From the moment you take off it’s chaos. Music fuels the ride and underplays the action and the most exciting part of this attraction, like Star Tours, there will be multiple versions of the ride so you never know what experience you’re going to get.

As the ride ends, you exit out to the Fortress shipping and receiving garage, a.k.a a shady black market gift shop. Want a piece of the Collector’s Collection to take home? Now’s your chance.

I asked Rohde and Quesada if elements from the upcoming Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2 were going to be integrated into the ride in the future. Quesada said, “That is the biggest challenge of doing Marvel in theme parks because whether it’s the comic book universe, the animation universe, the TV universe, the cinematic universe, it’s constantly changing. The challenge is how do you build it so that there’s this consistency with enough fluidity to the canvas where you can move things around. That’s the beauty of this exhibit.”

Get a closer look at the concept art for Guardians of the Galaxy: Mission Breakout! in our gallery below.

Are you excited for the new Guardians of the Galaxy: Mission Breakout? Let us know your thoughts in the comments!